University of Utah band stands in during NCAA Tourney
Mar 22, 2019, 8:23 AM
Steve Griffin, Courtesy Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — It was a crowded Vivint Arena for the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and one team’s band may have looked and sounded awfully familiar to locals.
There’s a reason why Fairleigh Dickinson’s band looks awfully familiar. pic.twitter.com/t4wYIXdUKJ
— Jody Genessy (@DJJazzyJody) March 22, 2019
The University of Utah basketball team didn’t make it to the big dance, but their band did. The Deseret News reports they stepped in to help Farleigh Dickinson University.
Fairleigh Dickinson doesn’t have a pep band, but NCAA rules require one at this level of play. So they borrowed the University of Utah band for their first-round game against Gonzaga.
The Utes wore FDU t-shirts and sat in the front rows at Vivint arena.
The temporary FDU band members chanted and cheered for the Knights, who ended up losing. But they did not learn Fairleigh Dickinson’s school song, because the university does not have one.
The University borrowed a band from the University of Dayton for their Tuesday play-in game in Ohio. The FDU cheerleading coach says the band is part of the whole atmosphere, and it helps with the spirit.
